Posts of PTA chairman, others advertised, LHC told

LAHORE: The federal government on Wednesday told the Lahore High Court that posts of chairman, member technical and member finance of Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) had been advertised by the cabinet division after completion of the tenure of the incumbents.

An assistant attorney general filed a written report before a division bench seized with a matter regarding reappointment of the PTA chairman. Representing the petitioner, Advocate Sheraz Zaka had argued that Amir Bajwa was an acting chairman of the PTA and was being re-appointed by the government as mentioned in the advertisement after completion of his four-year tenure. He said it will be against the law and judgments of the Supreme Court.

The counsel said the superior courts always discouraged ad hoc appointments in regulatory bodies. He said the process for the appointment of regular chairman of PTA had not been completed for the past one year and hence the court should interfere in the matter.

The government in its reply further stated that after completion of the tenure of the chairman there will be no re-appointment as new advertisement had been issued for new recruitment after completion of four-year tenure. In light of the government’s reply, the bench headed by Justice Shams Mahmood Mirza disposed of the petition.

Haj policy challenged: Haj policy 2019 has been challenged in the Lahore High Court (LHC) through a writ petition. Petitioner advocate Asif Mehmood says in the petition that the government has increased the amount of the government Haj scheme for a person from Rs280,000 to Rs456,000.

“The government has withdrawn the subsidy offered to the pilgrims and made the pilgrimage 65 per cent expensive,” the petition says. The petitioner alleged that the Haj expenses have been increased to illegally earn profits from the scheme. Federal government on January 30 withdrew subsidy on the pilgrimage, increasing the expenses by Rs176,000 for each pilgrim. He said in the petition that private tour operators have announced a lesser amount of Rs375,000 for Haj as compared to the government.

Under the new Haj policy, more than 184,000 Pakistanis will perform Haj this year, with 60 per cent quota of pilgrims reserved for the government-sponsored Haj scheme and remaining 40 per cent for the pilgrims who will travel through private hajj tour operators.